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Conference wrksys::alphastation

Title:	Alpha Workstation Conference
Notice:	See note 1.* for conference notices
Moderator:	WRKSYS::HOUSE

Created:	Wed Sep 07 1994
Last Modified:	Fri Jun 06 1997
Last Successful Update:	Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:	1996
Total number of notes:	9122

1925.0. "AS300-ISA Graphics option" by HGOVC::NANDAN () Tue Apr 15 1997 09:24

    
    This pertains to AlphaServer 300s (the AlphaStation 250).
    
    PB2GA-FB - the ISA - ATI Mach64 graphics card is no more 
    orderable.
    
    If one wishes to optimise on the PCI slots, is there any ISA 
    option that is available that is equivalent to the PB2GA-FB.
    
    Thanks in advance.
    
    Nandan

T.R	Title	User	Personal Name	Date	Lines
1925.1	3 OS support needed...	HGOVC::NANDAN		`Tue Apr 15 1997 09:25`	5
	With ref to .0, the customer needs support for the graphics card by all 3 operating systems - DIGITAL UNIX, OpenVMS & Windows NT. Nandan
1925.2	Nope.	STAR::KLEINSORGE	Fred Kleinsorge, OpenVMS Engineering	`Tue Apr 15 1997 11:49`	9
	No. ATI is/was the last manufacturer still producing ISA graphics options, everything has migrated to PCI. In fact, you can no longer order any "commodity" graphics for OpenVMS or UNIX on a workstation, but you probably knew that.
1925.3	Thanks!	HGOVC::NANDAN		`Wed Apr 16 1997 04:14`	12
	Fred, Thanks for the information. I do not know what you mean by "no longer order any commodity graphics". Since the AS300 has just 2 PCI slots, theres little or no expandability. Nandan
1925.4		STAR::KLEINSORGE	Fred Kleinsorge, OpenVMS Engineering	`Wed Apr 16 1997 10:24`	22
	Think of three tiers of DEC graphics: 1) "Commodity" options. Low-cost, good performance, designed for PCs, third party mfg (DEC doesn't build commodity graphics for the market). S3 Trio64 (aka 3D10), ATI Mach64, Cirrus are examples. 2) 2D options. Medium priced. Good to excellent 2D performance. Entry level 3D capable. Made by DEC. SFB, TGA, TGA2 are examples. I probably would lump Matrox in this bin as a 3rd party. 3) 3D options. Medium to high priced. Good to excellent 2D and 3D performance. Made by DEC and other 3rd parties working with DEC. Pick your favorite Powerstorm 4D* option. Option 1 is no longer available on workstations. Entry level 2D is now the TGA2. With the demise of ISA options, the only answer is more PCI slots. Or perhaps the new Intel graphics bus the've announced.
1925.5	Thank you	HGOVC::NANDAN		`Wed Apr 16 1997 21:16`	6
	Fred, Thank you for that comprehensive explanation. Nandan
1925.6		STAR::KLEINSORGE	Fred Kleinsorge, OpenVMS Engineering	`Thu Apr 17 1997 10:18`	5
	Oh, I'm sure that the WS folks don't think it's comprehensive ;-) Just a bystanders overview.
1925.7	Thanks!	HGOVC::NANDAN		`Thu Apr 17 1997 21:51`	9
	Fred, Unless the WS folks choose to add to this note, the "bystanders overview" is okay for now. Thanks, Nandan
1925.8	chose AS300 due to low cost.....	APACHE::ROY	I don't drive fast, I fly low	`Wed Jun 04 1997 15:23`	18
	Hi. I'm in a similar situation. We want to use the AS300 as a low cost firewall for ISP solutions. On the machine we need 2 Enet cards, graphics card (for NT), and SCSI that is cluster capable. Previous notes say there is no longer an ISA graphics card, OK. I see no ISA Enet cards available either (not that I'd want to use one). That leads me to the SCSI interface. Can the integral SCSI controller be used in a cluster situation? This machine will be running NT and then re-config'd for Unix. If we were Unix only, we'd go headless, or use a dumb terminal and not worry about the graphics. Any ideas? thanks, Glenn.....
1925.9	newer stuff	WRKSYS::SCHUMANN		`Wed Jun 04 1997 22:25`	5
	How about PWSau 433 cacheless? 5 good slots. Adaptec 2940uw scsi. It's slightly more $ than AS255/300, but it's also a LOT faster, and has a lot more room for upgrades, including performance upgrades. --RS
1925.10	what about clustering it?????	APACHE::ROY	I don't drive fast, I fly low	`Thu Jun 05 1997 09:16`	17
	Maybe. I need it to be a cluster. That means an external SW box with disks. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe the 2940uw is single ended. Depending on how much scsi length is used internally to the 433, I may or may not be able to reach the SW box (3M total length allowed?)? Usually we have been using the KZPSA-BB which is FWD for clustering. I don't see that in the SOC. Even though we are CSS, we try not to get in the habit of config'ing stuff that we would have to support without the appropriate testing..... Or, is it too early for me and I'm missing something obvious????? thanks, Glenn p.s. Other than the cluster issue, yes, I've been trying to figure a way to use this machine in our work. I like the way it looks.